New EU Grant Award

CLOsed-loop Neural prostheses for vestibular disorders (CLONS)

CLONS logo

Bilateral loss of vestibular sensation, as can occur after ototoxic drug exposure, infection, trauma or other insults to the inner ear, disables the vestibular periphery and results in postural instability, motion perception deficits, chronic disequilibrium, and loss of vestibulo-ocular reflexes, which yields illusory movement of the visible world during head motion, postural instability and chronic disequilibrium. Implantable neural prostheses can improve this situation. The main goal of the CLONS project is to develop suitable technological solutions to increase the quality of life of people affected by vestibular disorders. Towards this aim, an innovative closed-loop sensory neural prosthesis will be developed suitable for human implantation.

This FP7 Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) €3.4M cross-disciplinary project is a collaboration between University College London (UK), Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Pisa (Italy), College de France, Paris, (France), Fraunhofer Institute for Biomedical Engineering, St. Ingbert (Germany), Massachusetts Ear and Eye Infirmary, Boston (USA), Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich (Switzerland), and University Hospital Geneva (Switzerland). University College London will develop the integrated circuits and packaging technology for the inner ear implant.